https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Sweden in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Until you've engaged a Swede in a discussion about, say, how best to sand a parquet floor, you haven't really understood them. They really come into their own when doing or talking about practical things. Here are some of the words you need to know to join them. https://www.thelocal.se/20250530/essential-vocabulary-to-help-you-to-diy-in-sweden Fri, 30 May 2025 15:28:18 +0200 essential-vocabulary-to-help-you-to-diy-in-sweden Swedes' favourite word is 'lagom', according to a new poll. But do you agree? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments. https://www.thelocal.se/20260414/is-lagom-really-the-best-word-in-the-swedish-language Tue, 14 Apr 2026 10:20:08 +0200 is-lagom-really-the-best-word-in-the-swedish-language Swedes famously loathe conflict, so it is perhaps natural that they are masters of the passive-aggressive dig. James Savage has picked out some gems and explains what they really mean. https://www.thelocal.se/20250801/swedes-are-masters-of-passive-aggression-heres-how-to-detect-it Fri, 01 Aug 2025 16:57:25 +0200 swedes-are-masters-of-passive-aggression-heres-how-to-detect-it On the face of it, it's a gamechanger: an AI Swede permanently in your pocket who never loses patience and switches to English. But do AI language tools actually work? And if so, which is the best? We'd love to hear about your experiences. https://www.thelocal.se/20260410/tell-us-what-ai-language-tools-are-you-using-to-learn-swedish Fri, 10 Apr 2026 09:15:11 +0200 tell-us-what-ai-language-tools-are-you-using-to-learn-swedish Sweden's government has dropped plans to bring in compulsory language tests for those applying for permanent residency, a spokesperson for Migration Minister Johan Forssell has told The Local. https://www.thelocal.se/20260317/swedish-government-scraps-language-tests-for-permanent-residency Tue, 17 Mar 2026 10:39:43 +0100 swedish-government-scraps-language-tests-for-permanent-residency Every language borrows from its neighbours: English is a proper mongrel, with layers of German, Danish and Norman French interspersed with smatterings of Celtic. Swedish has borrowed liberally from German, French and English, but a few other languages have left their mark, often in a way that tells a story about Swedish history. Here are some of the best. https://www.thelocal.se/20260312/the-most-unexpected-foreign-words-in-swedish Thu, 12 Mar 2026 11:48:38 +0100 the-most-unexpected-foreign-words-in-swedish The new language and civics requirements for Swedish citizenship will start to apply from June 6th, even though the official tests will not be ready. Applicants will be required to prove their ability in other ways, the government has confirmed. https://www.thelocal.se/20260210/swedens-language-requirement-will-apply-from-june-despite-lack-of-test Tue, 10 Feb 2026 17:34:07 +0100 swedens-language-requirement-will-apply-from-june-despite-lack-of-test How do an understated people "seize the day"? https://www.thelocal.se/20260128/swedish-word-of-the-day-passa-pa Wed, 28 Jan 2026 15:17:31 +0100 swedish-word-of-the-day-passa-pa Könsdysfori, sträcktitta and hantverksöl are in, but uä-barn and åldersskröplig are out. Here are some words joining or leaving the official list of contemporary Swedish. https://www.thelocal.se/20260126/what-are-the-new-words-in-swedens-language-rulebook Mon, 26 Jan 2026 14:34:04 +0100 what-are-the-new-words-in-swedens-language-rulebook There are a lot of vowels in Swedish and it can be easy for someone new to the language to mix them up. Unfortunately, sometimes that means you can accidentally say something obscene when trying to talk about vacuum cleaners. https://www.thelocal.se/20260116/three-swedish-words-where-the-vowel-makes-all-the-difference Fri, 16 Jan 2026 09:49:57 +0100 three-swedish-words-where-the-vowel-makes-all-the-difference This week’s episode of Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with Niels Paarup-Petersen, the Centre Party's immigration spokesperson . https://www.thelocal.se/20260114/people-who-have-done-everything-by-the-book-are-being-kicked-out-of-sweden Wed, 14 Jan 2026 19:14:50 +0100 people-who-have-done-everything-by-the-book-are-being-kicked-out-of-sweden The list of 27 new Swedish words published on Monday by the Swedish Language Council covers everything from global politics to nonsense words, with loanwords from both English and German. https://www.thelocal.se/20251229/full-list-the-27-new-swedish-words-that-defined-2025 Mon, 29 Dec 2025 10:33:33 +0100 full-list-the-27-new-swedish-words-that-defined-2025 In this week’s episode of Sweden in Focus Extra, we hear from the Umeå-based Canadian writer. Mandy Pipher about what it's been like moving to Umeå in northern Sweden. https://www.thelocal.se/20251210/i-hate-to-be-stereotypical-but-the-light-in-northern-sweden-is-amazing Wed, 10 Dec 2025 09:26:50 +0100 i-hate-to-be-stereotypical-but-the-light-in-northern-sweden-is-amazing It's quiz time again in this week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra for Membership+ subscribers. https://www.thelocal.se/20251204/how-good-is-your-swedish-vocabulary-quiz-15 Thu, 04 Dec 2025 17:04:50 +0100 how-good-is-your-swedish-vocabulary-quiz-15 Magnus Hambleton, a partner at the Swedish tech fund byFounders, argues that if Sweden were to make English an official national language, it would open itself up to an entire world of talent. https://www.thelocal.se/20251201/opinion-three-reasons-to-make-english-an-official-language-in-sweden Mon, 01 Dec 2025 10:45:09 +0100 opinion-three-reasons-to-make-english-an-official-language-in-sweden In this week’s episode of Sweden in Focus Extra, The Local's Richard Orange interviews the Iranian doctor Sasan Kazemian. https://www.thelocal.se/20251126/talent-deportation-its-a-lose-lose-game-for-sweden-and-swedish-taxpayers Wed, 26 Nov 2025 12:26:50 +0100 talent-deportation-its-a-lose-lose-game-for-sweden-and-swedish-taxpayers One of our favourite things about the Swedish language is its wonderful compound words, which range from being utterly bizarre to making perfect sense. https://www.thelocal.se/20161026/swedish-words-with-awesome-literal-translations Wed, 26 Oct 2016 08:59:00 +0200 swedish-words-with-awesome-literal-translations In this week’s episode of Sweden in Focus Extra, The Local's Becky Waterton interviews Tom Simpson, the founder of NZ Pies. https://www.thelocal.se/20251119/meet-the-new-zealander-who-missed-pies-so-much-in-sweden-he-started-selling-his-own Wed, 19 Nov 2025 16:52:50 +0100 meet-the-new-zealander-who-missed-pies-so-much-in-sweden-he-started-selling-his-own It's quiz time again in this week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra for Membership+ subscribers. https://www.thelocal.se/20251029/how-good-is-your-swedish-vocabulary-quiz-13 Wed, 29 Oct 2025 09:15:50 +0100 how-good-is-your-swedish-vocabulary-quiz-13 This week's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra for Membership+ poses some seriously tricky Swedish language questions. https://www.thelocal.se/20251029/how-good-is-your-swedish-vocabulary-quiz-12 Wed, 29 Oct 2025 09:15:50 +0100 how-good-is-your-swedish-vocabulary-quiz-12